That can be challenging for a young woman with an old-fashioned hobby in a retirement-heavy community, so Polson, 28, decided to take matters into her own nimble hands.

Polson and her friend, Tana Alfrey, have started an informal club called Stitch n' Brew to share their love of knitting, crotcheting and craft beer with others on alternate Sunday afternoons. It is the local women's spin on the international, longstanding group Stitch n' B----, though Alfrey and Polson wanted a more positive-sounding name for their circle of new friends.

Stitch n' Brew holds a similar format to Meetup.com in that it helps people with shared interests plan meetings in local communities.

Alfrey and Polson held their first gathering in late January at Southern Appalachian Brewery, where Polson works part-time as a bartender, and a dozen women from 20-somethings to middle age showed up to enjoy an afternoon of social knitting and crotcheting.

“My grandma taught me how to knit, so there's nothing wrong with an older crowd, but moving here and not really knowing anybody, it's harder to find a younger crowd,” said Polson, a bank teller by day. “We've always done this, always showed up at the bar and knitted while drinking a beer, so Tana and I were talking one day and we said let's just start a group.

“It's a way for me to get better at the craft, and with the area that we live in, I think fiber arts is a huge thing, so between beer and all the different art communities, I think it's a perfect match.”

Meg Hoke also sought an outlet for her enjoyment of knitting when she and her husband, local musician Todd Hoke, moved here from Austin, Texas, eight years ago. Todd Hoke saw a Stitch n' Brew flier while playing at the brewery one night and told his wife, who was thrilled after being part of social knitting groups while living in Austin.

“Then when we moved up here, there wasn't ever a group who knitted that was my age or met when I wasn't working,” Meg Hoke said as she wove her yarn during Stitch n' Brew's initial gathering, “so I just kind of stopped knitting after a while, because it wasn't as fun to knit on my own. It's more fun when you do it with other people.”

Alfrey and Polson have been pleased not only with the overall turnout of their first meet-ups but also the diversity of ability levels.

“I was nervous that I would bite off more than I could chew,” Polson said, “but I'm really happy to see that everybody is kind of self-sufficient, though I don't mind teaching people, even though it's something I've never really done before, other than a few times.”

Alfrey, 33, also enjoyed the fact that the first groups have included a good amount of crocheters since she excels more at that art form than knitting. She added that people of all ages, and both genders, are encouraged to join in the fun.

“We would love to have (male) fiber artists out here,” Alfrey said as she wove a beer bottle koozie. She then added with a chuckle as she shot a glance toward Polson, “We really like boys that knit and crotchet.”

<p>Like most newcomers moving to a different area, Sandy Polson wanted to meet people her own age with common interests when she relocated from Florida two years ago.</p><p>That can be challenging for a young woman with an old-fashioned hobby in a retirement-heavy community, so Polson, 28, decided to take matters into her own nimble hands.</p><p>Polson and her friend, Tana Alfrey, have started an informal club called Stitch n' Brew to share their love of knitting, crotcheting and craft beer with others on alternate Sunday afternoons. It is the local women's spin on the international, longstanding group Stitch n' B----, though Alfrey and Polson wanted a more positive-sounding name for their circle of new friends.</p><p>Stitch n' Brew holds a similar format to Meetup.com in that it helps people with shared interests plan meetings in local communities.</p><p>Alfrey and Polson held their first gathering in late January at Southern Appalachian Brewery, where Polson works part-time as a bartender, and a dozen women from 20-somethings to middle age showed up to enjoy an afternoon of social knitting and crotcheting.</p><p>“My grandma taught me how to knit, so there's nothing wrong with an older crowd, but moving here and not really knowing anybody, it's harder to find a younger crowd,” said Polson, a bank teller by day. “We've always done this, always showed up at the bar and knitted while drinking a beer, so Tana and I were talking one day and we said let's just start a group.</p><p>“It's a way for me to get better at the craft, and with the area that we live in, I think fiber arts is a huge thing, so between beer and all the different art communities, I think it's a perfect match.”</p><p>Meg Hoke also sought an outlet for her enjoyment of knitting when she and her husband, local musician Todd Hoke, moved here from Austin, Texas, eight years ago. Todd Hoke saw a Stitch n' Brew flier while playing at the brewery one night and told his wife, who was thrilled after being part of social knitting groups while living in Austin.</p><p>“Then when we moved up here, there wasn't ever a group who knitted that was my age or met when I wasn't working,” Meg Hoke said as she wove her yarn during Stitch n' Brew's initial gathering, “so I just kind of stopped knitting after a while, because it wasn't as fun to knit on my own. It's more fun when you do it with other people.”</p><p>Alfrey and Polson have been pleased not only with the overall turnout of their first meet-ups but also the diversity of ability levels.</p><p>“I was nervous that I would bite off more than I could chew,” Polson said, “but I'm really happy to see that everybody is kind of self-sufficient, though I don't mind teaching people, even though it's something I've never really done before, other than a few times.”</p><p>Alfrey, 33, also enjoyed the fact that the first groups have included a good amount of crocheters since she excels more at that art form than knitting. She added that people of all ages, and both genders, are encouraged to join in the fun.</p><p>“We would love to have (male) fiber artists out here,” Alfrey said as she wove a beer bottle koozie. She then added with a chuckle as she shot a glance toward Polson, “We really like boys that knit and crotchet.”</p>